


Hurricane in the Half-light

by Demonologi



Category: MLP - Fandom, MLP;FIM, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, My Little Pony: The Movie
Genre: AU, AU!Twilight, Alternate Universe, Character building, F/F, Minor Character Death, Plot, Slow Burn, basically twilight joins the storm guard and lowkey falls in lesbians with tempest, f/f - Freeform, my little pony - Freeform, plot heavy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-25
Updated: 2018-01-19
Packaged: 2019-02-06 11:48:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12816879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Demonologi/pseuds/Demonologi
Summary: An AU which begs the question of, 'What if Twilight decided to join the Storm King's army instead?"MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE MLP MOVIEAfter Tempest Shadows number, 'Open up your Eyes', Twilight Sparkle is suddenly met with the conflicting motions of what she is doing in this war. Her friends abandoned her, Equestria has fallen and she's caged with nowhere else to turn. Literally. When comfort is offered in the most unexpected way, Twilight is conflicted between fighting for what she's been told is the moral right, or for fighting for the reality that her eyes have been opened up to.The name is a play on the words 'Tempest' which could translate into 'Hurricane' and then 'Twilight' which could translate into 'Half-Light' lol okay I'm proud of it





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hnnn hi this is my first fanfic to be posted online so please keep that in mind
> 
> also writing two female characters is difficult when playing the pronoun game eW
> 
> sorry if characters are out of character okay I tried //shrug

Twilight stared across the bow of the Storm Guard airship, swallowing thickly. She couldn't take her eyes of Canterlot in the distance; and more importantly, how quickly they where approaching.  
How long had she'd been out for? It had taken Twilight and her friends a day and a half at the very least to get to Mount Aris- Yet now the Airship had taken them back to Canterlot in what felt like the blink of an eye. Her heart ached bitterly when she thought of her friends, wincing at her last words to them. Where were they now? Where they safe, or did Tempest capture them to?   
_'I just cant talk to you right now_.' Pinkie Pie's last words rang in her ears, likes echoes of the past. Causing Twilight to only shrink in further. What if she was never reunited with her friends, ever again? Would that be their last impression of Twilight? Telling them that she would be better of without them? Or would her friends remember her for the good times?  
Her eyes travelled to the darkening skies. Maybe there wasn't any time left for them to even consider the good times; if Equestria fell to the Storm King's control. Hope really was fading, maybe it really was time to Open Up her Eyes.  
  
"And by the looks of it, friendship failed you to." Came the cold voice outside her cage again, and Twilight's head turned slowly to face Tempest, who was staring her down smugly.   
"No," Twilight replied. Matching the cold tone of the Commander. "I failed friendship." The Princess decided sternly, a look of determination crossing her face. To which the Commander only laughed, seizing the opportunity.   
"Yes, yes you have. How can you ever go back to being the Princess of Friendship after this?" Tempest persisted, blue eyes turning away from the purple-pelted Princess to gaze across the Equestrian Land. Canterlot was only becoming bigger in the distance. It was only a matter of time before they reached the Grand Castle, where the Storm King would be awaiting them.   
"My friends will support me," Twilight snapped back, her wings fluffing up at her sides, challenging the confining walls of the cage she had been trapped in. "They'll save me, and we'll all defeat you and the Storm King for good!" She declared, her head raising determinedly as her hooves stomped furious at the ground beneath. Causing the enchanted cage which blocked her powerful magics to only swing ever so slightly.   
"Will they _really_ , Twilight Sparkle? How are you so sure?" Tempest shot back lowly, her tone cold and voice slow. "What makes you think that they wont abandon you?" The Commander continued to question, raising up to slam her hooves down on the bars of the cage. Twilight only flinched away, her once determined thoughts, dashed. "How are you so sure we'll even let them get to you? How are you sure that they'll even get here in time? How are you sure that they're even still alive?"  
Tempest watched in approval at how she shrunk into herself, wings once again falling limp. A pathetic sniffle came from the lilac Princess, her head hung in growing defeat. Twilight hated how she seemed to give in to Tempest's words, hated how she let those toxic questions get to her, yet she just couldn't help it.  
"You're the Princess of Friendship, with no friends. How pathetic. You need to expel any delusions you have of them coming back for you, before it weakens you." Tempest Shadow pressed with a hiss in her voice before Twilight could get another word in edgeways, leaning in further to the cage before slamming a metal-plated hoof down onto the bars.   
  
"Is there any wonder that we caught you so easily, after a measly bit of running away? You could have stopped me, Twilight Sparkle. You could have escaped. Yet your friends prevented that, your friends let you down. They trusted con-artists, made rainbows around ships, danced with Sea-ponies and left you alone and defenceless on a crusty old beach! They destroyed your efforts and got you caught. Maybe, just maybe, it you who's better of without them." Tempest chuckled, turning away briskly to march towards the very bow of the ship.  
"Friendship only drags you down, Twilight Sparkle. With only yourself to worry about, you're more likely to succeed. I did." The dark maroon unicorn said slowly, her words forming clearly and articulately and Twilight only wished she could just block them. Why was she starting to believe Tempest?  
"Are you even listening to me; or should I just send you back down to the cellar?" The Commander hummed, and when Twilight lifted her head she saw that the Commander had sat down at the bow of the ship. Staring of into the distance, past the murky grey clouds and the mountains that had muted in colour.   
"Why do you care about them dragging me down?" Twilight managed eventually, her voice tight and hoarse. Cracking at the end.  
  
"Because I care about you." Tempest admitted. "Some part of me believes that you don't belong on the losing side of this war. Some part of me knows that your place is in this army. Among the mighty, not caged at our command. You have that potential, Twilight. But this... this _Friendship_ only drags you down." The maroon pony slowly pushed herself up to her full height, taking one last moment to gaze out across the land before them, before turning and walking back towards where the Princess of Friendships cage hung.  
The lilac Princess was all but gob-smacked at the Commanders words; her mouth hung ajar and her ears flat against her skull.  
She felt frozen in place, only able to follow Tempest with her eyes as the armoured pony reached up on her hind-legs to clasp a thick lever in her hooves, pulling it down and watching Twilight's cage lower back into the cellar with no emotion showing in her eyes.  
  
"Yet, perhaps I am contradicting myself. Caring about you- Yet preaching about how trusting and relaying others will only drag you down. It's been a long day, _Princess_. It's time I spent some time clearing my thoughts before I start making nonsense claims like this." Tempest spoke in monotone as Twilight could only look up to her helplessly and in shocked silence as she was lowered into the scorching heat of the fiery cellar that fuelled the airship.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SO I didn't expect so many people to be interested in the first chapter and ask for updates!! that was a huge surprise, but thank you so much!  
> So apologies for this chapter being so late as this is a side fic for the main Homestuck fic on my page that I super duper encourage you to check out, even though its still only a few chapters long! But it's illustarted 100% by me as of writing and we'd love any kudos you could supply! ;u;
> 
> again, sorry for these characters being OOC! I dont write MLP often!  
> Thanks for reading c:

"Wake up. Commander Tempest Shadow requires you on deck." 

Twilight's bleary eyes where awoke by the sound of a grating, nasal voice and the sharp smell of burnt cheese. Finally she managed to focus on the scraggly, pudgy body of Grubber; Tempest's personal assistant. The fat-faced, porcupine looking creature carried the very distinctive stench of greasy food and body odour. A smell that faintly reminder her of Big Macintosh, after a days work on the farm grounds without a shower. Just with a bit more cheese to it. 

 

She groaned as she heaved herself to her hooves; not really remembering falling asleep. Yet the sleep at the corner of her eyes and the way her neck hurt from the awkward angle told her everything that she needed to know.

"Why? Are we at Canterlot?" She questioned, yet the only response she got from Grubber was a roll of his eyes and a flick of his finger towards the two guards that strayed behind him.

"Prisoner, don't you dare speak without permission to again. Guards, get her to Tempest. Now!"

Startled by the intimidating stance of the Guards at they moved towards her, Twilight pressed herself towards the ground and fluffed up her wings protectively. Gaining only one cruel snicker as the Guards made their way up the loud metal steps behind her to reach the lever that heaved her up to deck-level. Her entire body swayed and she found herself falling into it's walls as the cage swung back and forth when it began to raise up into the air. 

 

Grubber barked out another order that Twilight was too unfocused to care about, only vaguely aware of the Guards retreating with the Underling until they had left the cellar via a side-door that the alicorn hadn't noticed before. She made a brief mental note about it, if she even managed to escape. It was a highly unlikely opportunity, yet it was better safe than sorry. 

When she appeared on top deck, she winced against the harsh sunlight that stung her eyes. A thick layer of clouds and dust had covered the sky, accept for one patch of sun that lit the lilac horse's fur a bright colour. Almost vibrant around the edges. 

 

It was great to get some cool, fresh air after her uncomfortable nap in the cellar, and the Alicorn princess let her wings fluff out at her side to feel the paced breeze through them. What she would do to break free of the cage and soar towards Canterlot. She knew that nothing good awaited her there, yet she would prefer to get there as soon as possible rather than the agonizingly painful slow pace that they where out. Each mile of land crossed only doubled her anticipation.

"I didn't expect you to sleep so soundly." Tempest hummed, almost teasingly, from her post on the airship's bow. Twilight shrugged pitifully. "I've had a long week." She admitted, referring to the Festival as well. She was already lacking in her goodnight's sleep before all of this had happened. 

 

"I can relate to that. The King's been very controlling about this invasion, we've hardly had time to sleep on the job either." Tempest remarked off-handily, and Twilight blinked in surprise. Was that an attempt at a joke?

"Let me get straight to the point," Tempest coughed, catching Twilight Sparkle's attention from where she had been zoning out. Staring intently at how near they where to Canterlot. Under an hour of flight, at the very least. 

 

"When we get to Canterlot, The King will want your magic. He will drain it from you, painfully, as he will do to the other three Alicorn Princesses of Equestria. He will stop at nothing for your magic, yet I believe that it is possible for us to spare your suffering." The Commander began, tail flicking as she left her post, visibly alert to her surroundings. She didn't want any news getting to The King before she could speak to him. 

"W-What? My magic?" Twilight spluttered, remembering how out of fear from having their magic stolen by Tierek, Celestia, Luna and Cadence had all invested their magic for Twilight to control. Now instead of being overloaded with magic, she was going to be drained of it. A life without her magic would be a life without worth. "Possible to spare me? How?" The Princess asked, feeling desperate and hopeless in her beginning. Tempest's expression didn't change. 

 

"Join our faction of the war. The winning faction. Our Army has that of Equestria and the lands beyond on its knees, Twilight Sparkle. If we can persuade The Strom King that you are on our side, he may spare you." Tempest explained, her voiceslightly wavering as she attempted to keep herself together.

"You haven't anything left of your life. You will be drained and thrown in with the other captured civilians for manual labour. If you're lucky you may be appointed to mansion staff, field worker if unlucky. You have no ruler for your country, no friends or forces on their way to help you out." The dark pelted unicorn pressed, trotting closer to Twilights cage. "Prosper, or suffer." She stated, her sparking horn crackling into a bright turquoise light, fizzing in and out before stabilising. The broken-unicorn's magic lifted an odd contraption from one of the many cargo crates of deck. 

 

Tempest flung the horn-shaped magic suppressor into the cage.

"Join me and my army. Open your eyes to success and prosperity. Ascend to your strongest state of power and your truest potential." She hummed to the Alicorn, who was staring blankly at the suppressor. Too many things buzzing around her mind to truly concentrate on. Could she really betray the land she had been raised in, her royal leader and respected teacher? Just to keep her magic? The thought of laying grey and half-dead made her shudder.

Would it really be so bad to switch sides, when there was nothing of Equestria left to even defend?

 

"I'll go get you a uniform. We have approximately forty-five minutes until we reach the Canterlot port. I trust that you will have your mind made up by then." The Commander stated as her leaving remark, and from where Twilight stood, rigid, she could hear the faint hoofsteps of Tempest walking to the control room. The door closing behind her, and the descent down a flight of metallic stairs. 

 

Twilight's eyes lifted to the sky again, her crack of sunlight now swallowed up by the dust and angry clouds. If she was to give in to Tempest's proposition, would she be the final glimpse of Equestria's hope swallowed up by her own selfish instinct to survive and protect herself? 

Or was there anything left of Equestria to save?

Her mind wandered back to how Tempest mentioned the forced manual labour, slavery. Surely... Surely she could help more ponies if she was in a Commander position like Tempest, instead of a slave as well? At this cost, it seemed that there was only one choice.

Bluff, pretend to be of Tempest's side. Work her way up through the ranks of the Storm Army, until she was at a point where she could take the Strom King down when his back was turned.

She squeezed her eyes shut to finalise her plan as Tempest Shadow returned to the main deck, opening them with an energized glare. She was ready for this, whatever Tempest or Storm King wanted to throw at her. She had a plan, and when Twilight Sparkle had a plan, there was no stopping her. 

 

"I accept your request." 

Twilight responded, clearly and confidently as Tempest dropped the bag containing the uniform unceremoniously into the cage. Obviously taken by surprise of Twilight's outburst.

"Why?" Tempest questioned, slightly suspicious yet also curious, as she nudged the uniform properly into the cage with an out-stretched hoof. Twilight took the uniform in her mouth, knowing that her magic was repressed within the confides of the cage. She set her back-hooves in first, wrangling her tail through the hole and pulling the material up securely over her rump. Then moving the one-piece uniform around her front hooves and body, her wings proving to be a challenge, yet she got it eventually. Finally using her teeth by yanking the zip up around her chest.

The hooves where next, a strong material for sure. She slipped them one quickly. The armour was next, simply a chest-guard which looked like it would repel spells and any other magical attack. Her uniform wasn't anywhere near as complex or affective as Tempest Shadow's, yet they both wore the same emblem of the Storm Army.

 

"I took into consideration everything you said." Twilight started. "I realized that there wasn't any Equestria left to protect, and there wasn't any choice really. Have your magic drained and live a life of slavery, or join the strongest Army in quite possibly the world. I'd have to be an idiot to think any different, especially with such an offer." She explained herself, and Tempest nodded slowly, a proud look on her face. 

 

"Congratulations, Twilight Sparkle, you've finally opened your eyes to the truth of this world." The Commander sighed happily, turning back to face Canterlot. Nothing short of thirty-five minutes now, and those seconds couldn't come soon enough. The Unicorn tried to fool herself, repeating in her head that she did not truly care for Twilight. She only cared about their invasion, their army, solidifying her deal with the King and regaining her horn. If she could make their army stronger with the strength of a skilled Alicorn princess, she was sure that the only thing it could do was raise the King's opinion on her. Show her in a better light, as a Commander who worked hard to support and train their army. 

"Yet there is still one person who stands between you and your new life. And that is the Storm King himself."

 


End file.
